Ice-freezing can.



PATENTED SEPT. 15, l903.- E. E.' HANMB-R.

10E FRBBZING GAN.

APPLIUATION FILED-JULRZS, 1902l N0 MODEL.

IIIIIIIIIHI .MIIIIIIIIIH I @Hun Patented September 15, 1903,

PATENT OFFICE.

ERWIN ERNEST HANMER, OF RICHMOND, VIRGINIA.

'ICE-FREEZING CAN.

SPECIFICATION `forming part of Letters Patent No. 739,173, dated september 15, 1903. Application led .Tuly 23, 1902. Serial No. 116,719. (No model.)

Vmeans that serve the twofold purpose of forming lines of weakness in a cake of ice and of admitting non-circulating brine to the interiorof the can, so as to prevent adherence of the formed cake to thecan, to inject a current of gaseous duid into the water to be frozen lfor the purpose of removing iioating Inatter,which enables raw or nondistilled water to be used in the manufacture of ice, and to so construct the can that the cake of ice may be dumped or emptied without trouble, after which the cake may be split or divided readily into a number of smaller cakes.

With these ends in view the invention consists of a freezing-can'embodying novel features of construction and arrangement of parts, which will be hereinafter fully described and claimed.

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification, in which similar characters of reference indicate corresponding parts in all the figures.

Figure lis a perspective View of afreezingcan having a portion of one of its side walls broken awayin order to show the interior construction of one of the groove-forming hollow strips. plane of the dotted line 2 2 of Fig. 3. Fig. 3 is a plan view. Fig. 4. is an enlarged detail vertical sectionthrough the lower part of the freezing-can, illustrating the means for injecting a jetof air or gas through the bottom thereof. Fig. 5 is a detail perspective view of a block of ice as it appears when dumped or emptied from the can, and Fig. 6 is a detail view of a modified construction of the can.

5 designates a freezing-can, which may be of `any suitable dimensions. This can lconsists of a shell formed by metallic ends and Fig. 2 is a vertical section in the4 side walls, and within' the can, at one end thereof, is a bottom 6, the other end of the can being open, as shown by Fig. 2. This bottom is secured to the cana suitable distance abovethe lower end thereof, and below the bottom v6 is a false bottom 7, arranged parallel with said bottom 6 and forming therewith an intermediate chamber-,8. The two bottoms are of metal, and they are secured to the can by any suitable means.

9 10 designate the two pairs of groove-forming strips, which are secured to the side and end walls, respectively, of the can and-extend longitudinally thereof from the bottom 6 to the top edge of the can-body. The strips 9 are arranged at the middle portions of the side walls forming the parts of the can-body, and they are in opposing relation to each other. The other strips 10 are fastened on the'inner faces of the end walls of the can-body, and theylikewi'se occupy opposing relation to each other. Each strip is of hollow construction, and in the drawings I have shown each strip as being made from a piece of sheet metal, which is bent or formed around a suitable mandrel and flanged, said flanges bearing against the wall of the can-body. The strips have their flanged edges secured to the canbody in a manner to produce liquid-tight joints, and the lower ends of these strips are fjoined to the bottom 6 by water-tight joints.

Each strip is tapered longitudinally, and it is arranged within the can for its broad or wide end to lie next to the bottom 6, while the narrow end terminates at or near the open top edge of the can.A The series of hollow strips 9 10 communicate with the subchamber 8 by means of the openings ll, one of which is provided in the bottom 6 at a point to communicate with the space of the hollow strip, said openings establishing communication between the spaces of the strips andthe subchainber 8. The false bottom 7 is also provided with a series of openings 12, which establish communication with the chamber '8 and provide for the admission of brine to the chamber 8 and the hollow spaces of the strips 9 l0 when the freezing-can is lowered into the brine of a freezing-tank for the purpose of freezing water in the can in accordance with the well-known can system for the manufacture of ice.

IOO

13 designates an air or gas pipe which is carried through one of the hollow strips within the freezing-can. This supply-pipe 13 is adapted to be coupled at its upper end, as at 14, to a flexible hose or tube 15. The lower part of the supply-pipe 13 is provided with a branch 16, which terminates in an inlet 17, the latter being preferably arranged at the middle partvof the can-bottom (5. In this branch 16 is provided one or more checkvalves 1S, which may be of any suitable construct-ion, and this check-valve is adapted or mounted so as to open under the pressure of the gaseous fluid supplied by the pipe 13, said check-valve closing under the pressure of the water contained in the chamber of the can should the pressure through the pipe 13 be cut off for any reason.

In thedrawings I have shown the freezingcan provided with a single air or gas inlet located centrally in the bottom of the can but while this construction is efficient in cans of small dimensions it will be understood that I reserve the right to employ two or more valved inlets when the invention is embodied in cans of larger capacity, each valved inlet having an air or gas pipe adapted to he conducted through one of the hollow strips. The hollow strip serves to keep the air or gas pipe from coming in contact with the water contained in the can and undergoing the freezing operation therein.

In the service of the can it is charged or filled with water and lowered into the br'ine or other freezing mixture contained in the tank. The air or gas under pressure is forced through the pipe 13, passes the check-valve 1S, and is injected through the inlet 17 into the body 0f the water. The air or gas circulates through the water contained in the can, and it serves to drive the floating impurities toward the surface of the water, thus enabling me to use raw or non-distilled water. At the same time the brine is free to pass through the openings 12 and 1l in the false bottom and the can-bottom, respectively, so that the hollow strips 9 10 will be charged or filled with brine up to a desired level; but this brine does not circulate through the hollow spaces provided in the can by the strips, whereby the cake of ice will not freeze as solidly at the lines where the strips 9 10 eng vle therewith as at the remaining portions thereof. The chamber 8 also serves to prevent the bottom of the ice cake from freezing solidly to the can, and the ice is thus prevented from adhering to the can so tightly as to render it difficult to dump or empty the cake from the can on the withdrawal of the latter from the freezing-tank. The frozen cake'when removed from the can takes the shape represented by B in Fig. 5, from which it will be seen that the cake is provided with longitudinal grooves b b in its side and end edges. The cake can easily be divided by splitting or cutting the same along the dotted lines indicated in Fig. 5, thereby dividing the cake into quarters of equal dimensions, because the grooves b b form lines of weakness in the frozen cakes of ice.

In my improved freezing-can the subjacent chamber 8 serves two purposes. First, it provides a space in which the brine does not circulate to any appreciable extent. Hence the brine in said chamber is at a somewhat higher temperature, owing to the absorption of heat from the water in the can, than the mass of brine circulating through the ice-making apparatus, and thus the inner end of the frozen cake will not adhere solidly to the bottom 6, and, secondly, this chamber distributes the brine uniformly to all the hollow strips of the series Within the water-chamber of the can, such distribution of the brine from the quantityconined in the chamber tending to minimize the circulation of the brine in the hollow strips, and consequently prevents the adhesion of the cake to said strips.

The longitudinal taper of the strips 9 10 facilitates the withdrawal of the cake from the can after the freezing operation shall have been completed.

Instead of forming the brine-spaces in the strips which are secured inside of the can, I may make the groove-forming strips integral with the can by bending or folding the walls of the can itself in the manner shown by Fig. G, so as to produce the strips 20, the latter having the brine-spaces and being tapered, as in the construction before described. Separate strips 2l are secured to the outside of the can and cover the brine-spaces to close the latter.

Itisevidentthatthestripstend tostrengthen or reinforce the can-body.

Having thus described my invention, I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent- 1. A freezing-can of the class described, provided on the walls of its water-chamber with vertical chambered strips which extend into the water-chamber, and a brine-chamber connected with said strips for supplying brine to said chambered strips. Y

2. A freezing-can of the class described, provided on the Walls thereof and within its Water-chamber with a series of vertical chambered strips, means for supplying brine to the chambers of all the strips, and an air or gas pipe extending through one of said strips and connected with said water-chamber.

3. A freezing-can of the class described, provided with a series of chambered strips which are located on the inside of the walls of said can and extend substantially from the top to thebottom thereof, said strips being tapered longitudinally and toward the open upper end of the can and a brine-chamber connected with the chambered strips.

4. A freezing-can provided in its Waterchamber with a series of hollow strips arranged interiorly on the side and end walls of IOO IIO

the can-body and forming therewith a series of longitudinal brine-receiving spaces, each opening through the bottom of the can.

5. A freezing-can provided with a chambered bottom and in its water-chamber with a seriesv of longitudinal brine-receiving spaces in communication with said chamber of the bottom.

6. A freezing-can provided in its waterchamber witha series of hollow strips forming longitudinal brine-receiving spaces, a subohamber in communication with said brinespaces, and an air or gas pipe having a valved4 branch leading through the snbchamber and terminating in an inlet which opens through the can-bottom.

7. A freezing-can provided in its waterchamber with a series of hollow longitudinal strips which form brine-receiving spaces at the sides and ends of the can, a bottom secured in the can and provided with an air or gas inlet, a false bottom secured to the can to form an intermediate chamber with the bottom thereof and provided with brine-ports, and an air or gas pipe leading through one of the hollow strips and provided with a valved branch which is extended through the chamber of the bottom and communicates with said air or gas'inlet.

3o 8. A freezing-can provided with a chamber having means for the admission ofbrine thereto, and chambered strips disposed within a water-chamber of the can, said strips being in communication with said brine-chamber.

9. A freezing-can provided below its waterchamber with asubchamber having means for the free admission of brine thereto, and chambered strips within said water-chamber and in communication with the brine-chamber.

lO. A freezing-can provided with a waterchamber, a brine-chamber below the waterchamber, means for the admission and exit of brine to and from said brine-chamber, and chambered strips within the water-chamber and communicating withthe brine-chamber, whereby brine is admitted to the chambered strips and allowed to remain still therein.

1l. A freezing-can provided with a waterchamber, a brine-chamber below said waterchamber, hollow strips within the water-chamber and connected to the brine-chamber, and means for supplying a current of air or gas to the bottom of the water-chamber.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specication in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

ERWIN ERNEST HANMER.'

Witnesses:

WM. C. CAMP, WALTER HALLADAY. 

